The Irish National Ploughing Championship 2018 took place in Tullamore, Co. Offaly this week and vStream were in attendance thanks to a partnership with the Irish Heart Foundation.

Nearly 300,000 people attend the ploughing championship each year over a three day period. Irish Heart were just one of the 1,700+ exhibitors to have a visitor attraction set up for the week.

A festival-goer tries vStream’s VR Experience while waiting for a check up

Irish Heart’s is an organisation who set out “to affect positive change in the lifestyles of Irish people, to achieve better outcomes for those affected by heart disease and stroke and to challenge when the health of our nation is put at risk.” Commenting on the Irish Heart Foundation’s involvement in the National Ploughing Championship 2018, Marese Damery, Health Check Manager, Irish Heart Foundation said, “We are delighted to be attending the Ploughing Championship this year, we provided free blood pressure and pulse checks to more than 1,500 people last year and hope to do the same in 2018. High blood pressure, which is a major cause of stroke and heart attack, is one of the most prevalent risk factors in the population and one which once identified is very manageable, thereby reducing risk. A blood pressure check is a simple quick and non-invasive test that could prove life-saving. We would encourage people to come and have a free check.”

In order to raise awareness of the alarming increase in the number of Irish citizens affected by heart issues; Irish Heart offered free blood pressure and pulse checks to attendees at this year’s ploughing festival.

To coincide with Irish Heart’s free check ups – vStream created a VR experience where users could take a virtual journey inside their heart and learn about Atrial fibrillation. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an irregular heartbeat that can cause blood clots, stroke and heart failure. People with AF often show no symptoms. Thousands of festival goers availed of the free health check and VR experience at this year’s Ploughing Championship.